Napoléon à Sainte-Hélène: L'Authentique Eau de Cologne de l'Empereur by Cosmalia {Historical Fragrance}
Napoléon 1er is famously known for having been an Eau-de-Cologne junkie of the first magnitude. He would pour 60 bottles a month of the cologne introduced in France by Jean-Marie Farina on his shoulders and proceed with invigorating frictions, this to counteract the relaxing effects of his beloved extra hot baths.... a sort of Scottish shower, Bonaparte-style. So addicted was Napoléon 1er that he even had bottles of cologne designed in the shape of slim parchment rolls so that he could slip them into his boots during his military campaigns........
Vanille 44 by Le Labo: A Paris Exclusive (2007) {New Perfume}
Le Labo, a young French perfume house based in New York which half-playfully, half-seriously invite their customers to "join the revolution" of a new perfumery stubbornly guided by attention to quality and creativity have released a new exclusive, this time to the city of Paris, called Vanille 44. Previously they issued Tubéreuse 40 for New York city and Aldehyde 44 for Dallas. You can try to beg, but they will not let these perfumes leave the confines of each of the cities they are dedicated to. It is all in the name of putting back perfume on a pedestal and bringing in back exclusivity.
Le Labo name their fragrances according to a central raw material used in the blend and the number of ingredients included in their compositions. The end result might be less literal than advertised by the title name.......
Les Années Folles Exhibition at the Galliera Museum in Paris {Scented Paths & Fragrant Addresses}
A beautiful exhibition called Les Années Folles (1919-1929) can currently be seen at the Musée Galliera de la Mode de la Ville de Paris. It offers a retrospective on the fashion and beauty culture of the Roaring Twenties showing the progressive emancipation of the feminine body. The era saw the birth of the garçonne and a host of convenient symbols of emancipation such as smoking in public, driving a car, wearing short dresses and short hair, signs that hardly masked the fact that the right to vote was still denied to women in France and would be until 1944. In the US, thanks to the suffragette movement, national women's vote was established earlier, by 1920. The first country in the world to grant women the official right to vote was actually New Zealand in 1893.......
Frederic Malle on Perfume Publishing {Fragrant Reading}
Illusion of Complexity, Carol Alleman, 2001
There is a Q & A with Frederic Malle in the San Francisco Chronicle. Malle describes his work as an editor of perfumes. He is largely responsible for a movement that puts the perfumer center stage and gives him or her the status of author. A perfume for him without doubt can be a piece of art, on a par with a painting by Matisse. Short formulas, like short pieces of writing, are more difficult to achieve because only the essential is expressed.
This set of beliefs represents modern ideas that are still debated. Some perfumers do not seem to care about authorship in the sense of it being individualistic and like to stress collaborative efforts; the model of film director or screenplay writer might better apply. Some perfumers will probably still see themselves as sophisticated urban artisans rather than Picassos. There was also a time once when perfumers took pride in creating complex formulas. Joséphine Catapano with Norell comes to mind about which she said "We all knew the formula was long, like a treaty" (note the "we"), as well as Ellena with the 160 ingredients in First (but he has since then evolved to embrace the position that it is a less interesting approach to take). More recently, a German perfume made by Frank Rittler, Steffen Schraut, still boasts "about 120 natural essences"..........
Entretien Avec La Parfumeuse Crystelle Darchicourt de L'Atelier Bohême: Un Parfum Doit Faire Chavirer & Une Réflexion Sur La Masculinité {Perfume Q & A} - Original French Version
Satyre et nymphe, Pierre Nivollet, 2000
Crystelle Darchicourt est la propriétaire et le nez maison de L'Atelier Bohême. Vous pouvez lire notre compte rendu de son parfum, Fil de Soie. La discussion a commencé par se centrer sur ce parfum masculin puis s'est élargie un peu plus par la suite.
Marie-Hélène Wagner: D'où vous est venu l'idée de concevoir un parfum masculin comme Fil de Soie qui me semble quelque peu atypique? Le nom aussi est plutôt féminin. Je veux dire par là que l'on aurait pu s'attendre à ce que vous mettiez plus l'accent sur des stéréotypes masculins, du point de vue tant du nom que des codes olfactifs.
Crystelle Darchicourt: Fil de Soie fait partie des parfums concepts. J’ai 2 façons de travailler pour les parfums de peau ; les parfums d’émotions s’apparentent au vécu olfactif, aux préférences, par contre les parfums concepts ou d’esprit relèvent de l’association d’idées plus que de l’association de senteurs.
Fil de Soie fait sans doute appel à mon inconscient, à la traduction des symboles masculins. L’idée de départ c’est une ballade en forêt dans laquelle vit le dieu de la forêt sous la forme mythologique du satyre. On devine alors l’idée des notes boisées, la note animale, et l’atmosphère imprécise donnée par les aromatiques..........
Interview with Perfumer Crystelle Darchicourt of L'Atelier Bohême: A Perfume Must Make You Keel Over & Reflections On Masculinity {Perfume Q & A} - English Translation
Suzanne Moxhay, Forest, 2007
Crystelle Darchicourt is the owner and perfumer of L'Artisan Bohême. We reviewed her fragrance, Fil de Soie (Silken Thread). The discussion started with questions on this masculine fragrance then addressed broader questions later on.
Marie-Hélène Wagner: What was your inspiration for creating a masculine perfume such as Fil de Soie (Silken Thread), which seems to me to be somewhat of an atypical perfume? The name too is rather feminine. What I mean by that is that one could have expected you to put more emphasis on masculine stereotypes, regarding both its name and olfactory codes.
Crystelle Darchicourt: Fil de Soie is part of the concept-perfumes. I have two ways of working with skin perfumes; perfumes of emotion have to do with olfactory experience, with preferences. On the other hand, concept-perfumes or of-the-mind have to do more with thought associations than smell associations. Fil de Soie relies no doubt on my unconscious, on the interpretation of masculine symbols. The point of departure is the idea of a stroll taken in the forest in which the sylvestrian god lives under the mythological form of the satyre. One then guesses the idea of the woodsy notes, the animal one, and the imprecise atmosphere conveyed by the aromatics.....
The Madness of The Perfume Industry {The 5th Sense in the News}
With major perfume launches amounting to $50 million in investment these days, it has become increasingly hard for brands to see profit emerge out of these ventures. Armani Privé 3 years after its launch remains unprofitable but is kept afloat in order to generate an intangible value: cachet.....
Burt's Bees Cologne (2007) {New Perfume} {Men's Cologne} {Perfume Review in a Nutshell}
Burt's Bees has launched a reportedly 100% natural oils cologne for men in its Natural Skin Care for Men collection, simply called Burt's Bees Cologne. From the ad copy,
"Exude confidence and appeal with this all-natural blend of essential oils. Fresh citrus oils of lemon and orange and energizing bergamot are blended in the warm, spicy depth of cypress and fir oils for a crisp, woodsy scent." .......
One of the most beautiful perfume ads ever: the flow of the garland, ribbon, and tassel all align suggesting lushness, richness, and elegant nonchalance as well as a subliminal cornucopia shape. The black and white contrast done in quasi religious chiaro-oscuro tones reflects the introspective qualities of the scent well. The image is even a bit haloed; the perfume and the decorations glow as if a pristine white light were shining through stained glass in a Scandinavian church set in a snowy landscape in a Dreyer's movie.
Dior Homme TV Ad by Hedi Slimane with Jamie Dornan {Scented Images}
Ex-artistic director of Dior Hedi Slimane directed the TV spot for the fragrance Dior Homme, which he helped compose. The ad features model Jamie Dornan and the song "For Lovers" sung by Pete Doherty.
![Reblog this post [with Zemanta]](http://img.zemanta.com/reblog_e.png?x-id=acc5158d-a637-49d2-a923-1ee71b3aa037)
Digg This
Stumble
Facebook
Del.icio.us
